Shindigs

You're welcome! 

Looks at player name
Looks at who recruited
Yeah, that checks out!

As long as we unite in our goal to #blamecole I'm cool with it!

So we’re five weeks into Jesse’s rookie season in the VHL and so far so good, I think. Due to work and life I have definitely slowed down in some ways but I am still committed to reading along on Discord and claiming as much of that sweet sweet TPE as possible. Speaking of, Jesse has managed to move from their long standing 7th place among the S85 draft class up to 6th, passing Henry Tucker Jr in TPE. By my calculations it’s still going to take me a few months before I can pass Phil Strasmore so we’ll see how that goes over the next few seasons.
 
I am still enjoying it here even though my social life on discord has taken a bit of a hit. I am sure there’s a joke or two I have missed in the Moscow LR that Garsh @Garsh  wouldn’t have been surprised to see me suddenly pop in on. I am most active in the Marlins LR since as the AGM I am trying to be there for new players and earn that nonexistent AGM pay. I have managed to actually keep up with giving out Starfish of the Sim but lately due to Thanksgiving and getting engaged, I have had to do multiple days all in one go. But otherwise, I am still enjoying talking to those I do.
 
Speaking of being an AGM, I really do love my players and how amazing the Marlins are doing this season. Jacob @jacobcarson877 really did an incredible job with the draft and has brought in some really active members since then. Praise be to Simon.
 
I have also been thinking about what else I want to do in the VHL in terms of content and applying for jobs. For jobs, I have decided that I don’t have the personal time or the consistent energy needed to be a GM. After learning a lot from Shindigs @Shindigs and working alongside Jacob, I think I am a good learner and a good teacher, but I don’t think I would make a good leader. For starters, I work a job that has me working 10 hour days 7 days a week from March 1st to April 15th and I know that I can’t be a GM during that time nor should I go into the job before promptly dumping a month and a half on an AGM. So I think I am comfortable in the AGM position and am happy to help wherever and whenever I can. I also would like to get an updater job when they open up. I am on the site constantly and know it’s something I could check in on a lot. I did also apply for a mod position but nothing has come from that application and since I have only been here six months, I wouldn’t be surprised if I am still too new to really be considered for the job.
 
In terms of content, I have been thinking of giving podcasting a try. It’s crossed my mind the few times I have been too stuck to write a media spot or when I have no ideas for a graphic. But then I force myself to do one of those two because who wants to listen to me talk about the VHL when I still only know a handful of people. I do have a big interview with Lachlan Summers @kirbithan that I have been meaning to write for VSN but every time I think about working on it either I get busy or I just don’t have the motivation to write it. Which is so sad because I was really looking forward to it and then I just got some brain fog and it was all over. I still have my interview saved so maybe one day I’ll finally be able to sit down and write it. And yes I see the irony of me writing up a 1,000 word media spot right now but when it’s practically a stream of consciousness it makes it easier.
 
As for Jesse’s performance, I think they’re doing pretty well. I am happy with where I have been applying TPE and I think it’s definitely working. (Thanks Shindigs!) As of writing this, Jesse has a 7-3-1 record with one shutout. Their current save percentage sits at a comfortable 0.923 and their goals against average is 2.43. Compared to the other four backup goalies in the VHL, Jesse has played the second most games behind Thomas Price @Thunderidge (20), has the second highest save percentage behind Sam Tombstone @samthemancub (0.938), and is running middle of the pack in respect to goals against average. For a rookie season, I think it’s going pretty well and I am looking forward to seeing where we end up over the next few weeks. Honestly I feel good about how this is going. It feels good and I think it shows that Jesse is capable of holding their own against the big players. I am also glad and thankful that Dil @Dil is trusting Jesse to get the job done here and there. Earning a starting position is definitely a goal for Jesse and I am looking forward to seeing what I can do with them. I think for my first ever sim league player I’ve got a pretty good handle on it.
 
I think as far as my first six months in the VHL and my first go around with a sim league, all around it’s going pretty well. I have some consistent cheerleaders behind me and honestly this has been the most fun I have had in an online community in a long time. When people congratulate me on my engagement or wish me well when I post that I’m sick, the responses really feel so genuine and as someone who has been on the internet since before the MySpace days, it’s really refreshing to find such a positive community. 
 
I appreciate you all and I look forward to what the next six months has in store.
 
Oh and since I’m feeling like a real member of the community now:
 
#blamecole
 

 
1022 words for weeks ending 12/18/2022 and 12/25/2022

This change basically just undoes what the hybrid change broke. There were way harsher variants than this tossed around, but this was the best middle ground. The ability to Jagr the 9th season will really help take the edge off, as assuming you plan your build accordingly. That Jagr will save roughly 87-115 TPE in depreciation. That still makes it a massive final hit, but it's entirely possibly to still cap around 1200 TPA as a competitive max earner with it. And at that point, unless you're specifically a Center or willing to invest in meme attributes. You're so deep in diminishing returns adding another 100 TPA to your peak (which 8 season players can do) isn't doing much for you in the sim. More of a "I like big numbers" thing at that point.
 
That being said, I foresee @Daniel Janser having a bit of an interesting time with his depreciation management. 👀

what can I say, the TPE kind of burned in my pocket... but should have probably saved them... ah spilled milk, will just save for the remainder and hope to be still a useful player in my autumnal days of my career
 

This change basically just undoes what the hybrid change broke. There were way harsher variants than this tossed around, but this was the best middle ground. The ability to Jagr the 9th season will really help take the edge off, as assuming you plan your build accordingly. That Jagr will save roughly 87-115 TPE in depreciation. That still makes it a massive final hit, but it's entirely possibly to still cap around 1200 TPA as a competitive max earner with it. And at that point, unless you're specifically a Center or willing to invest in meme attributes. You're so deep in diminishing returns adding another 100 TPA to your peak (which 8 season players can do) isn't doing much for you in the sim. More of a "I like big numbers" thing at that point.
 
That being said, I foresee @Daniel Janser having a bit of an interesting time with his depreciation management. 👀

a bold statement when it takes 2,5 Tre Kronors to make up one Canadian Dollar 

#blamecole

Why you gotta call me out like that

Over the past year and a nickel, I have witnessed many first gens and the stories of these players. I have seen the most excited first gens fall off, I have seen people create then never be seen again, and I have seen players slowly build into a new member of the league. It has become my favorite part of being involved in the VHLM. The sight of seeing the newest member of our community find their footing in the league, and with this MS I want to tell the story of all the people who caught my eye as a first gen player during the tenure in Miami.

@Shindigs - Truly the first Marauder when I was in management. It was always clear shindigs was going to be a major member of the league. I remember when shindigs joined the league they wanted to learn about STHS so much they went through every single sim Miami had and looked at every play BoJo was involved with. Is it possible shindigs still does this? I mean maybe, but it truly showed the dedication of a hardcore member, and his insights taught me more about STHS than any other single member ever did.

@lidz - With the play Nicholas Blue, I remember lidz being a fairly inactive player their first season, but the second season in Miami was different. Nicholas Blue took being a welfare+ player to the max. They were the life blood of the Miami Marauders with a roster than in reality shouldn't have been a 3 seed. I do believe that as M GMs this is the type of player we can all be thriving to produce. A player that gets excited about their player and talks to their teammates. It is truly a shame that lidz has disappeared, but they truly were an exciting player in my eye and if they were to come back I would recommend any GM to take them any day because of how good of a person lidz is.

@Sen - Another part of that Miami Marauders team that really shouldn't have been as good as it was. Sen was a player that was IA, but I messaged as a last ditch hope to get back into the league. Sen became a very active member of the Marauders locker room bringing life blood into a dead channel. They were a welfare with an occasional presser, but not enough to make them a welfare+ player. Sen was special though because of how friendly they are in locker rooms. It is rare you find someone in the league who is as nice as sen is on the internet. If you ever have the chance to bring Hockley Mann to your team I do recommend it.

@D3X - Notorious sim league member. I remember draft night this season I was on the draft stream when a brand new member was talking in discord. Of course we began to talk this new member, but unfortunately because of timing with the draft they were unable to be drafted in the VHLM draft. This didn't stop them from joining the Marauders in waivers though. I do believe that D3X is the next big member to come out of Miami in terms of welfare/welfare+ guys. I do highly recommend giving him a look if you are a VHLE or VHL team because while they aren't active in Miami's locker room this season unfortunately not many people are. 

Word count: 575

My journey, as have countless others, started in the VHLM and it was off-season. For the season 84 VHLM draft, my player was selected by the Saskatoon Wild in the 4th round, which came as a slight surprise since the Las Vegas Aces GM at the time @Shindigs was the only one who reached out for a draft interview. I remember scrambling around searching for answers on how to properly obtain TPE before the dread setting in to ask around because I didn't want to seem like an idiot that didn't know how to read. Eventually, I had a routine down of what tasks to do and how to claim them, but I still didn't have a concrete understanding of a lot of basic things like capped versus uncapped TPE. At some point, my player was traded to the Mexico City Kings. The culture in the locker room was alive and electrifying, yet welcoming. Every day was engaging and exciting to be in the locker room, and while I don't expect it from all locker rooms I think it's certainly a contributing factor of retaining first gens like myself. You can all blame that bar being set on @badcolethetitan. #BlameCole
 
In the off-season, it was just racking up TPE and waiting on the VHL/E drafts. I didn't have many GMs reach out for E draft interviews, but I was pretty happy that my player was picked 16th overall by Oslo Storm.. As far as the VHL, I had several reach out and it was a lot more fun to engage with GMs who didn't want to just ask a couple same-y questions most asked and were also more than happy to answer questions I had for them. My player was drafted 17th overall for the VHL draft by the Prague Phantoms and absolutely can't wait to start there next season. @Acydburn has been super helpful in pointing me in the right direction of where I want my player to be when he gets the call up, as well as any questions I have.
 
In this past off-season I applied and was chosen to be the GM for Team USA in the WJC, which was actually an incredible run for someone who has no experience using something like the STHS and we got silver. I also applied for the Calgary Wranglers AGM position and was also chosen for it, which was mind-blowing to me. Not only do @Ricer13 and I get along really well, we also share the same birthday! The locker room is always poppin' and I couldn't be more happy to learn the ropes from someone like him.
 
Playing for Oslo has been fun and rewarding! We've definitely had a lot of ups and downs, but we're slowly working our way back up the ladder. I'm currently capped at the 400 TPE point, so I'm stuck until this season ends to make my player stronger. I know I won't have 900+ TPE by the time the next season comes along and my player won't be as strong as I want him to be, but that's where the fun and grind really begins. It's been a while since the last one, but I started an interview series called "Between the Periods with Bobbus Dingus ft. Nikolas Kauppi" and it was somewhat inspired by Narduar in his mannerisms -- the only difference is Bob asks a question that goes a bit far and pisses Kauppi off. Being on a forum/bulletin board has also brought me back to making forum signatures...something that I haven't done for over 10 years. I love the criticism I've been getting on my recent ones and it just makes me want to do better.
 
I didn't even know simulation leagues existed. If it weren't for my friend @Trunkxolotl I'd still be in the dark about it to this day, but thanks to him I found a place where the teams are driven by GMs with a real sense of passion and pride. The players revel together with their ability to score, defend, and win -- all in hopes of taking home their league's Cup title. A community that takes all these experiences and puts pen to paper to show off their bravado to the world, and rightfully so.
 
711 words, PT for week ending 12/11.

My experience as a 1st gen. 

I joined the league briefly in 2014 but retired my player a day later and was never drafted. The league looked cool but I was a bit overwhelmed on what exactly to do and realized I probably didn't have the time to make a good player. I then returned 8 years later to make my first real player Girts Galvins. 

After creating, I needed quite a bit of help to get going. Thankfully I was drafted to Las Vegas and my new GM's @AJW and @MubbleFubbleswere happy to answer all my questions (I had a lot of them). These guys were great for a 1st gen player and without their help I would probably not still be in the league. Similarly the help I got @FrostBeard and @Shindigs in Bratislava and of course @dlambin Warsaw were all instrumental in Girts becoming the player he is today. 

Starting with my first season in Las Vegas, I was drafted 41st overall as an unknown player and think I became a pretty good value pick for the Aces. This was a real fun season, I was learning about the league, what tasks to do, how to improve my graphics and my player was doing fantastic. My GM's recognized my hard work and by the end of the season I was on the 1st line with the best players on the team. Girts finished with 42 goals and 91 points. I believe we had a great playoff run also and Girts was one of the top scorers. Just a great all-around experience, I was really enjoying the league and looking forward to the next step. 

My 2nd season was in Beardislava where Girts was drafted 12th overall by the Watchmen. This was a really great spot to land and once again I lucked out with GM's in Frostbeard and Shindigs, they helped me take my game to the next level and shindigs sent me amazing charts he made analyzing my play in the sim. That was really something and I learned a lot. It was a successful season in Bratislava as Girts had 32 goals and was becoming a real good player. 

On to the VHL where I was drafted 17th overall by Warsaw along with my Bratislava teammate and defensive beast Brian Payne @Scurvy. Hit the jackpot with DLamb as our GM and quickly decided I wanted to be a great player for the Predators. My first VHL season wasn't what I imagined as my points were pretty bad but the team was doing well and I was still enjoying things. Year two and three were fantastic as Girts became a good VHL goal scorer with 29 and 27 goals and we won the cup in S84. That was a great experience and something I will always remember. 

This season Girts is lighting it up and seeing my name near the top of the Player Leaders all year is pretty awesome. Really enjoying the league and after a bit of an overwhelming learning curve as a first gen I finally feel comfortable.
 
If I could suggest anything for a 1st gen, it's don't be afraid to ask questions if you don't know what to do. I've found people here to be very friendly and helpful anytime I've interacted with them. The site can be a bit overwhelming at first but stick with it and you'll eventually become a pro. 
 

Matthew Kai, Elfon Ashelf and Ian Smith
Jack Todaro and Haydyn
Chet Foreals and barry bigman
Dirty Caufield
Greg Santos
Majestic Buffalo
Dawson Thibert
Ches Morrison
Kiefer Leclerc
John Smith
Danny dimes
Evgeni Shevkov
Titomir Pukshuuter
Laser Brewer
George Patton
Calix Pearce
 
 
Current Leaderboard
1: Matthew Kai
2: Calix Pearce
3: Evgeni Shevkov
4: George Patton
5: barry bigman
6: Greg Santos
7: Elfon Ashelf
8: Kiefer Leclerc
9: Chet Foreals
10: Dirty Caufield
11: John Smith
12: Majestic Buffalo
13: Jack Todaro
14: Titomir Pukshuuter
15: Ches Morrison
16: Ian Smith
17: Danny dimes
18: Dawson Thibert
19. Haydyn
20. Laser Brewer
 
 
Oh god, people are going to start thinking this is rigged now as I find myself writing about a player currently playing in the VHL for the second straight article, despite the fact that this was very unlikely to happen given the numbers. So let’s talk Cameron Elsby, the user Spence King’s second player created off the back of the retirement of Spencer Elsby, a player that recorded 1178 TPE, however I’ll save talking about them until episode 942. Through the first half of their build-up to their Season 81 VHL Draft, Elsby was looking like one of the top prospects in the draft and for a good chunk of the lead-up was the fourth highest draftee in TPE. However in the latter half of the period leading up to the draft, their earning fell off a cliff and, prior to the draft fell down to having the 19th highest TPE of the prospects in their draft, so despite the success of their previous player, it wasn’t really a surprise to see Elsby taken with the 25th pick in the VHL Draft. Elsby would spend their first season in the VHLM (after vehemently arguing about being in the VHLE) and had a very good season with the Houston Bulls, winning the top defenseman trophy, before spending the next two seasons in the VHLE and averaging close to a point per game with the Vasteras Iron Eagles.  
 
They then got promoted to the VHL to play for the Los Angeles Stars team that had traded for them back in Elsby’s third post-draft season and got about as much return as you’d expect from a player who just about made it over the VHLE 400 TPE cap with 55 points across two seasons along with a solid number of hits and shot blocks. However, not long after their rookie season, Elsby stopped updating their player and, save for a lone practice facility submission in October, has not updated since the start of July, thus putting any hopes that LA may have had of Elsby progressing into a 700+ TPE defenseman to an end. Leading up to Season 86, they were traded twice in the off-season, being a part of the Davos Dynamo for just two hours before being traded to a Chicago Phoenix team that badly needed defenseman depth. Through 55 games, it looks like Elsby is going to set their personal best for assists in a season and may yet break their best point total in a season, but the latter will likely be just barely broken as they have 23 points in 55 games and would have to get 7 points in 17 games to tie their previous record. However, they do have a positive +/- on a Phoenix team that is sitting very high in the standings as of writing.
 
So where does Elsby rank in regards to best players in the VHL Portal? Well, I can’t rank them first or second. While their stats aren’t that much worse than either Matthew Kai or Calix Pearce, Elsby did go inactive earlier on in their career than Kai did and Pearce is still active, so someone who has had one update in the last five months can’t really displace them. However their stats are comfortably better than that of Evgeni Shevkov, therefore I place Cameron Elsby as the third best player in the VHL Portal
 
New Leaderboard
1: Matthew Kai
2: Calix Pearce
3: Cameron Elsby
4: Evgeni Shevkov
5: George Patton
6: barry bigman
7: Greg Santos
8: Elfon Ashelf
9: Kiefer Leclerc
10: Chet Foreals
11: Dirty Caufield
12: John Smith
13: Majestic Buffalo
14: Jack Todaro
15: Titomir Pukshuuter
16: Ches Morrison
17: Ian Smith
18: Danny dimes
19: Dawson Thibert
20. Haydyn
21. Laser Brewer
 

Hello @Members!
 
As discussed when we introduced the hybrid attributes a few seasons ago there’s a number of balancing “patches” that are likely to be required as things get sorted out. One of those we are rolling out today, to be put into operation for the S88 depreciation.
 
For a bit now it has become clear that depreciation is not hitting as hard as intended since hybrid attributes rolled out. Our initial estimations on how players would depreciate simply didn’t pan out which means that TPA numbers in later seasons are higher than intended. For that reason we will be adjusting the depreciation numbers and fighters to the following:
 
First year - 5%
Second year - 8%
Third/Fourth year - 12%
 
Additionally the depreciation fighters are being adjusted as well:
 
Still Kickin’
5% Depreciation

Old but not Forgotten
8% Depreciation
 
The effect of the Jagr purchase will not be changed, however we are making it possible to purchase a Jagr in fourth year (AKA 9th season) depreciation which was previously not possible.
 
As mentioned these changes will not affect the depreciation next season but will affect depreciation in S88 so plan accordingly.
 
Additionally these changes only affect skaters, goalie depreciation will remain the same including the block of purchasing the Jagr in year 4.
 
We hope these changes will bring depreciation numbers back to the expected amounts and make the fighting purchases worthy of their cost once again.
 
Sincerely,
@BOG
@Commissioner

The year is almost over which means it's time for everyone's favourite time of year in the VHL, the holiday celebration! From the charity drive to the auctions to the free TPE everyone loves the holidays in the VHL!
 
This year, we've chosen The SickKids Foundation for our Canadian side and St. Jude's for our American side. These are, of course just our league-supported charities. As always, you are free to donate your funds to any registered charity anywhere in the world and count it towards the auction and our total numbers; all we ask is a screenshot proving the donation (though please remember to react ay personal information). 100% of the money raised by the league will be donated to the two organizations, and the VHL will not take any cut. On top of that the league has decided to one-up ourselves this year. After our first three charity drives have been huge we've decided to match up to $1000 when the final donation is put in. That means if the league donates $2500 total we'll put the donation up to $3500!
 
In addition to the Donation Drive, we will also kick off our Charity Auction and 12 Days of Christmas. How will it all work? Essentially the same as past years, but here are the exact details for each portion of our holiday season for 2022:
 
Charity Drive: December 11th - 24th
Starting right now, members can begin donating. Whether you do so through the league, by donating HERE, privately to either organization, or any charitable foundation of your choosing (receipt proof required for donations made outside the league), it will all count towards the overall contribution from the league.
 
From that overall contribution, the league will match donations up to $1000 CAD, and add that to the donations through the league, splitting the total contribution (money donated through the league + the league contribution) equally to both organizations.
 
Please post all confirmations of donation, including Paypals through the league, auction wins, and private donations to THIS THREAD. Any donation of $5 CAD, or more, will result in an automatic personal reward of 2 Uncapped TPE + a Full Free Week (12 Capped TPE), as well as an entry to each of the first 3 tiers of the 12 Days of Christmas Raffle.
 
Like last season as well we will be accepting blood donations in the charity drive. Blood is in high demand all year round, but especially at this time. Give the gift of life to someone. If you schedule and follow through with an appointment to donate blood that will count the same as a $5 donation and have the same rewards outlined above and below. For proof just post a photo from during your donation, it doesn’t need to include your face if you don’t want it to, a shot of the machine or your arm or whatever is fine, we’ll take your word for it.
 
As this is the season of giving, members may also donate on behalf of one other user.
 
Holiday Charity Auction: December 13th-20th
@Acydburn will be posting the auction items in the next couple of days but for now the full rules from last season are available here, they will not be changing. Go buy something fun offered up by our community members. Auction wins will count as personal donations for the purpose of individual rewards.
 
As always there are some amazing auction items that we're looking forward to this year so it should be fun.
 
12 Days of Christmas: December 12th - 23rd
This year’s 12 Days of Christmas will be similar to last year’s, where there will be a daily thread to claim “tickets” into our final raffle, which will be drawn on a live stream. For this raffle, there will be 4 tiers of prizes, with each day contributing to your entry into each tier, as follows:
 
Dec. 12 - 14: Post in the corresponding thread each day for an entry into the Tier 1 raffle (1 ticket gained per day)
Dec. 15 - 17: Post in the corresponding thread each day for an entry into the Tier 2 raffle (1 ticket gained per day)
Dec. 18 - 20: Post in the corresponding thread each day for an entry into the Tier 3 raffle (1 ticket gained per day)
Dec. 21 - 23: Post in the corresponding thread each day for an entry into the Tier 4 raffle (1 ticket gained per day)
 
Number of Winners per tier:
Tier 1: 10 Winners
Tier 2: 5 Winners
Tier 3: 3 Winners
Tier 4: 1 Winner
 
Rewards and Donation Milestones
As previously mentioned, there will be personal rewards to those who participate in the charity drive / holiday auction, as well as stretch goals to hit which will result in rewards for the community as a whole!
 
$500 Community Donations: 2 Uncapped TPE for Everyone + @nurx will give a guided tour of Chattanooga
$1000 Community Donations: 4 Uncapped TPE for Everyone + @Phil will host a Christmas themed DrunkCast
$2000 Community Donations: PT Doubles Week for Everyone + @Beketov will host a live children's bedtime story stream (blame @Moon for this idea)
$2500 Community Donations: 6 Uncapped TPE for Everyone + Christmas metal songs courtesy of @DarkSpyro
$3500 Community Donations: 8 Uncapped TPE for Everyone + @Beketov will once again stream Zoo Tycoon 2 Ultimate and name animals after chat
 
**Disclaimer: Rewards may only be applied to players created on, or before, December 25th, 2022**
 
Let's do this @Members!

The announcement is made and will publish at midnight PST when our week flips over.

1. 6.9, realistically higher than that. But I just give that rating to everything in the VHL at this point, so if it ain't broke. Don't fix it.
2. Simon is not a benevolent god, he will grow hungry for more and more. Until the price he asks is one you simply cannot pay.
3. Stuff and things, just highlighting the more memorable 1st gens I've worked with as AGM/GM.
4. Probably, I don't see who would realistically challenge you with the roster you have this season.
5. My rookie 1st gen season was pretty weird. A whirlwind of stuff happening at a pretty controversial time in the league. It was a fun time too though, forums were so much more active than they have been since.
6. I've never been to the continent, let alone the city.

1. 6.9, realistically higher than that. But I just give that rating to everything in the VHL at this point, so if it ain't broke. Don't fix it.
2. Simon is not a benevolent god, he will grow hungry for more and more. Until the price he asks is one you simply cannot pay.
3. Stuff and things, just highlighting the more memorable 1st gens I've worked with as AGM/GM.
4. Probably, I don't see who would realistically challenge you with the roster you have this season.
5. My rookie 1st gen season was pretty weird. A whirlwind of stuff happening at a pretty controversial time in the league. It was a fun time too though, forums were so much more active than they have been since.
6. I've never been to the continent, let alone the city.

@VattghernCZ First Gen! 🔥

This but specifically for 1st gens to get a tag in the portal is currently in the works.
 
P.S. We're also not actually getting paid, so you get what you pay for. 😅

This but specifically for 1st gens to get a tag in the portal is currently in the works.
 
P.S. We're also not actually getting paid, so you get what you pay for. 😅

Hello everyone! I would first like to say Happy December. I am looking forward to winter break and spending time with my friends and family. This college stuff has been very restricting in my time to be able to write articles, but now that I approach a much needed break, I might be able to find some time to work on these and get my TPE up while this season is still fresh. Anyways, enough with the gibberish, lets move on to the topic at hand, First Gens!
 
As a First Gen myself, I have put in a lot of time into the forum to build my player from a lowly 40 TPE to around 400 TPE at the time of this post. There are several points I would like to make on how to grow your player in the matter of 2 seasons and potentially running the forum by your rookie year in the VHL.
 
CONNECTING WITH THE RIGHT GM EARLY
So, I'm sure if you've read my articles in the past, I mention @badcolethetitanand @Shindigsvery often. This is because they are very good at what they do. Both connected with me early in my career and built me to become a point-producing Defenseman. Following my JST performance, Cole reached out to me to inquire about the possibility of being selected by Mexico City (VHLM) in the S84 draft. By assessing that I felt the chemistry needed to be continued between the both of us (I was on his JST team), I assured him that I felt we had unfinished business and needed to win a championship together. Then, Shindigs came knocking on my door and guided me through the build process and how I should adjust my earning and spending based on what type of play style I thought would best suit my player. By scrolling through the countless texts we've exchanged, I learned that if you wanted to produce the most on the offensive side of the puck, you will want to focus on the "Offensive Vision" attribute, as it works both passing and shot attributes. He also explained that if you wanted to touch the puck more in game, you want to build up your "Defensive Coverage" and "Poke Checking" to make sure you're defensively sound (These are based on my more offensive defenseman build, of course it might be different for the other builds). After eventually being selected by Shindigs's Las Vegas (VHLM), he guided me through the forum and how to claim MSs, PCs, Trivia, etc. This only excelled my learning and allowed for me to max earn at a rate that would only see me go through one season in the M. I was able to cap at 200 once I ended my VHLM season and immediately moved up to the E. Having the correct GM early can allow for you to progress quickly to your goals of dominance of the forum.
 
SPEND SOME TIME EARNING AND READING THROUGH MEDIA SPOTS/.COM ARTICLES
Something I did to progress through the forum quickly was writing Media Spots (worth 6 TPE) and .com Articles (2 TPE). Essentially, you can write anything forum-wise for a MS (500+ words), and anything you want for a .com(~250 words). If you have trouble with coming up with a topic, you should explore past MSs or .coms to get an idea. For example, I created a series of MSs that covered Power Rankings through the VHLM season and I was able to claim those for a constant pump into my TPE earning. For a .com, I was and continue to cover the career of my player, Reid Johnson, through the lens of Fox 39's Chris Rock. From rumors to funny stories, Chris covers it all. Writing is a great way to earn quickly and if you write a lot, you can claim the TPE for multiple weeks on end.
 
MOST IMPORTANTLY: BE PATIENT
I think the most important thing you can do is...be patient. Your time will come. It's going to take a lot of dedication to the forum to become one of the greats within the forum. It's going to seem like your earning is slow. But as I've mentioned before, if you stay connected to your GMs they will continue to support you. Stay involved in your LRs, as there are some veterans who will be able to help answer your questions. 
 
In conclusion, being a First Gen in the forum is quite a wild one, trust me. However, if you keep your nose in the dirt, you should have great success. Happy Earning!

All 3 of them are losing their minds on twitter rn!

Got that Vegas connection in the VHFL as Thunder is another alumni. And unless Bo decides to fall off a cliff again, he's looking pretty solid for the Bek. I picked Thunder for it since if Bo wins I get 1 TPE from winning the award, so might as well stack the odds by picking another more-or-less guaranteed top 5 assists dman.